Pence makes surprise visit to Bagram Air Base

KABUL» U.S. Vice President Mike Pence told Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on a secret visit Thursday to Afghanistan that the U.S. is “here to see this through” as they discussed a newly announced U.S. strategy to break the stalemate in America’s longest war and consulted on upcoming parliamentary elections.

Pence’s surprise preChristmas visit was the first to the war-torn country by either Trump or the vice president, and it came as the Trump administration charts a pathway to ending the 16-year war in Afghanistan.

“We’re here to see this through,” Pence told Ghani and Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah at the presidential palace in Kabul, arriving after a helicopter ride through smoky, dark skies surrounding Afghanistan’s capital.

Later, at a rally at Bagram Air Base, Pence told hundreds of U.S. airmen that he believed “victory is closer than ever before.”

“It’s because of all of you that we’re safe. It’s because of you that we’re free. It’s because of you that freedom has a future in Afghanistan and America and all across the wider world,” Pence said.

Pence also received briefings from military leaders, including Gen. John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan.

The White House restricted the use of cellphones and internet communications for a small group of journalists traveling with the vice president, citing security concerns in Afghanistan.

Pence’s trip was focused on Trump’s strategy to “fight to win” in Afghanistan by attacking enemies, routing al-Qaeda and preventing terrorist attacks against Americans.

The first-year president has urged the U.S. to shift away from a “time-based” approach to the protracted conflict by linking U.S. assistance to results and cooperation from the Afghan government, Pakistan and other partners.